ALBANY, N.Y. -- Environmental groups say a measure passed by the New York State Legislature requiring manufacturers to collect and safely dispose of mercury-containing thermostats would remove a major source of the toxic metal from the waste stream.

NYPIRG estimates that 310,000 mercury-containing thermostats are discarded annually in New York, and only about 3,500 of them are collected under voluntary recycling programs.New York Public Interest Research Group

The legislation, which awaits Gov. Andrew Cuomo's signature, was passed late Friday night by the Senate and Assembly. Environmental and health groups have psuhed for such a law since 2010.

"Over the years, New York has taken great strides to reduce mercury pollution," Laura Haight of the New York Public Interest Research Group said in a prepared statement Sunday. "This bill addresses one of the largest remaining sources of mercury pollution in New York, the hundreds of thousands of mercury-containing thermostats that are discarded each year."

Mercury is a highly potent neurotoxin that is extremely harmful to pregnant women and children. A state law in 2005 phased out the sale of many mercury-containing consumer products and banned their disposal in solid waste facilities. But discarded mercury products still end up in the waste stream. NYPIRG estimates that 310,000 mercury-containing thermostats are discarded annually in New York, and only about 3,500 of them are collected under voluntary recycling programs.

The industry-funded Thermostat Recycling Corporation, which advocates voluntary recycling, objects to some provisions in the New York legislation -- such as designating thermostats as hazardous waste rather than the current classification as universal waste. Mark Tibbetts, executive director of the organization, said the New York bill also sets unrealistic goals for the first year of the collection program.

The legislation requires manufacturers to collect 15,500 thermostats by 2015. After that, the state Department of Environmental Conservation would set annual collection goals and could require manufacturers to pay a bounty for old thermostats to encourage recycling.

Several other states already have similar laws in place. In Vermont and Maine, manufacturers are required to pay $5 to contractors and homeowners who return mercury-containing thermostats, leading to significantly higher collection rates.

California has required manufacturers to operate a collection and recycling program since 2008, and by 2017, it will require that 75 percent of discarded mercury thermostats be diverted away from landfills there.

Haight said New York's legislation isn't as strong as laws in Maine and Vermont but is similar to California's.